This spring, FOB’s directors, cast, and crew are going to tackle a tough and oftentimes taboo subject that is too painful for people to visit - suicide. Breaking the walls surrounding this issue isn’t easy, but the play, The Girl in the Mirror by Bruce Jacoby, is able to present this situation in such a way that is understandable for a young audience. It is important to teach today’s society that suicide is not the answer. The Girl in the Mirror does just that. FOB’s goal in performing this drama is to respectfully raise awareness for an issue society faces while confronting the stigma surrounding mental illnesses head-on, reminding everyone that even in the darkest of times, there is still hope. We also plan to work side by side with our school counselors to raise suicide awareness during all phases of the production and to offer sources of help and hope to those who need it.

Play Synopsis: “Whether she lives or dies now,” a doctor explains to a teenage girl’s mother, “is largely a matter of her own will.” Thus begins the story of Susan Connors, a potential suicide victim who lies in a coma at a hospital. With the help of a character identified only as “The Speaker,” the audience is led on a journey through the young girl’s mind. We learn why she has chosen to attempt to take her own life; we are witnesses as she learns there may indeed be an alternative to death. It is a play about communication, about feelings, about sympathy, and, most importantly, about self-knowledge.